Micalah Spenrath

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Texas’ ADER Task Force Makes Progress on VPPs, Challenges Remain

Posted by Micalah Spenrath on Jan 17, 2024 10:02:14 AM

Workshops Drive Progress for Distributed Resources in Texas (1)

Roughly one-third of Americans report having a side hustle to supplement their income. Side hustles range from delivery drivers to social media influencers and may soon include something surprising—electricity providers. That’s the promise of a Virtual Power Plant (VPP), letting consumers sell their unused energy back to the grid and get compensated for it. A VPP is formed when distributed energy resources – like solar panels, batteries, and EVs – are combined, or “aggregated” together and managed as a single resource like a power plant. 

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Topics: Wholesale Markets, Texas Advanced Energy Business Alliance, Texas, Distributed Energy Resources

Energy Efficiency Reforms Stall in Texas as the Grid Staggers Under Record Demand

Posted by Micalah Spenrath on Aug 29, 2023 12:14:51 PM

A Critical Tool, Energy Efficiency Can Enhance Texas Grid ReliabilityThe Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) began this year by engaging stakeholders on energy efficiency. The pace was ambitious, but now progress has stalled. Through the Energy Efficiency Implementation Project (EEIP), stakeholders participated in biweekly working groups that ran from January through March culminating in a number of recommendations and best practices for the Commission. But the trail has since run cold; Now as ERCOT, Texas’ primary grid operator, issues rapid-fire notices asking Texans to voluntarily reduce their electricity use to avert a grid emergency, we are left to wonder when the Commission will take up the EEIP’s recommendations and unlock Texas’ full energy efficiency potential. 

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Topics: Texas

Discussing the Future of Distributed Energy Resources at the Public Utility Commission of Texas

Posted by Micalah Spenrath on Jul 19, 2023 5:30:17 PM

Workshops Drive Progress for Distributed Resources in Texas copyTexas’ demand for electricity breaks records year after year as the state battles extreme weather. Although Texas accounts for about 1/7th of the nation’s total energy consumption and uses more energy than any other state, demand for electricity keeps rising. Unlike traditional power plants that require years to become operational, distributed energy resources (DERs) are a readily available tool that Texas can use to meet this significant electricity demand.

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Topics: Texas

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